The Defend Free Speech Campaign would like to thank the hundreds of supporters across Canada who generously responded to our urgent appeal for funds. Thanks to you, we have raised almost $20,000 CAD to help pay for the ongoing costs of the legal campaign. Our dedicated legal team has been working pro-bono since the ban was announced, but they continue to face unavoidable expenses.

Over 7,000 people in 11 cities attend events featuring former British MP

December 1, 2010 (Toronto) – Former British MP George Galloway completed his 12-day, 11-city pan-Canadian speaking tour on Saturday with a stop in Ottawa where he addressed a capacity crowd of 900 people. Following his Ottawa speech, Mr. Galloway joined several hundred participants who marched to Parliament Hill to oppose the Conservative government’s plans to extend the Canadian mission in Afghanistan.

“As any bookseller will tell you, the book you try to ban always ends up on the bestseller list,” said Mr. Galloway in Ottawa. “Thanks to Jason Kenney’s attempt to ban me, I have drawn thousands to my speaking events all across Canada.”

During his speaking tour, Mr. Galloway addressed sold-out crowds totaling over 7,000 people in 11 cities in 12 days. In Calgary, Jason Kenney’s constituency, over 800 people attended Mr. Galloway’s speech at the University of Calgary. The biggest event was in Vancouver, which attracted nearly 1,200 people.

“This tour has been an overwhelming success,” said organizer James Clark. “Not only did we break Jason Kenney’s ban, we also managed to reach far more people than we could have imagined. It is a big victory for free speech in Canada.”

In March 2009, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Jason Kenney attempted to ban Mr. Galloway from Canada, an act that was condemned in a 60-page ruling by the Federal Court of Canada: http://bit.ly/cKc7nd. The Court’s ruling on September 27 cleared the way for Mr. Galloway to return to Canada. On October 3, he addressed over 800 people at a church in downtown Toronto. On November 16, he commenced his pan-Canadian tour called, “Free Afghanistan. Free Palestine. Free Speech.”

Mr. Galloway’s tour was organized by the Canadian Peace Alliance, the Canadian Boat to Gaza, the Canadian Arab Federation, Independent Jewish Voices, and the Defend Free Speech Campaign. The media sponsor was rabble.ca.

Former British MP George Galloway will appear in ten cities on a pan-Canadian speaking tour from November 16 to 27, 2010. Organized by local peace coalitions and Palestine solidarity campaigns across Canada, the tour is called "Free Palestine, Free Afghanistan, Free Speech". Mr. Galloway will speak about the Canadian government's attempts to ban him as well as the political situation in the Middle East and Central Asia.

"I'm looking forward to speaking in person with the many Canadians who have defended their right to hear me, including those who disagree with me," said Mr. Galloway from London, UK. "I'm also looking forward to challenging Jason Kenney to a public debate, who has yet to account for his role in trying to keep me out of Canada."

On September 27, 2010, the Federal Court of Canada ruled that Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Jason Kenney had attempted to ban Galloway from Canada for purely political reasons: "It is clear that the efforts to keep Mr. Galloway out of the country had more to do with antipathy to his political views than with any real concern that he had engaged in terrorism or was a member of a terrorist organization" (paragraph 8). The ruling cleared the way for Galloway to return to Canada. On October 2, he arrived in Toronto. The next day, he addressed a crowd of over 800 people at a downtown church.

Federal Court Judge Richard Mosley issued a 60 page ruling today that slams the federal government for attempting to ban former British MP George Galloway from entering Canada. The ruling vindicates Galloway and his Canadian supporters who argued that Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Jason Kenney made a political decision to try to keep Galloway out of Canada, not one based on national security claims.

According to Justice Mosley, "the main reason why the respondents (the Federal government) sought to prevent Mr. Galloway from entering Canada was that they disagreed with his political views."

The ruling also refutes government claims that Galloway's humanitarian aid convoy to Gaza made him a national security risk: "From the evidence on the record, the question of Galloway's admissibility was never an issue of national security... CSIS was consulted prior to the writing of the CBSA assessment and had no national security concerns about his visit."

The ruling exposes how staff in Jason Kenney's office attempted to ban Galloway from Canada, although no final decision had been made: "It is also clear that the preliminary assessment was prepared with the intention that it be used to justify a CBSA officer's determination that Mr. Galloway was inadmissible should he appear at the border."

Galloway's Canadian supporters are claiming victory. "This ruling confirms what we have been saying from the beginning: Jason Kenney attempted to ban Galloway because he disagreed with his views," says James Clark, a member of the Toronto Coalition to Stop the War and an applicant in the case. "This kind of behaviour is completely unacceptable in a democratic society, and represents a serious attack on Canadians' free speech rights. We are pleased that the Court agrees with us."

Galloway and his supporters will announce in the coming days the details of an upcoming speaking tour that will bring Galloway back to Canada.